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December 08, 2007
Holidaze
A few news and notes while the weather outside is slightly less than frightful....
I've finished Christmas shopping a whopping 17 days early. And everything's wrapped, saved two gifts on their way via Amazon. Might be some sort of record here. Also a record? How much I spent. Let's not dwell on that. And yes, I'm using the royal "we" there.
Our last stop today shopping-wise was Kohl's. Pretty much every store had manageable crowds until then, at which point it was White Trash Walking. Good gravy. In any case, we split up, since McGee's Law dictates that I always find the longest line possible. While we eked forward, I noticed a series of candles on sale near the register. One of the scents? "Holiday Memories". So I picked it up, smelled it, and said, "Yup, smells like disappointment and bitter recrimination, alright!"
Had a milestone in my athletic life on Thursday: I bowled a 176 at a company function at Jillian's. Even more impressive? I did it while running on roughly nine Jack Daniels and Diet Cokes. I gave myself a degree of difficulty and still managed to pull off the highest score of my life. I'd like to thank all those hours playing Wii Bowling at my brother's house.
Someone else actually got a 203, but he left before the impromptu awards ceremony, so I ended up getting a laser-engraved crystal: one of those floating images inside the crystal thing. (I think "floating images inside the crystal thing" is how it's listed in the catalogs.) In any case, I spent part of my work morning on Friday debating ways to most obnoxiously display this award. I eventually settled on putting it on the file cabinet in front of me aside my new direct-to-DVD self-help guide, "How to Be Awesome at Bowling...And Life!" Figure I can be on the cover in a smoking jacket and bowling shoes, posing like "The Thinker".
Video Game Note #1: I can't adequately describe how much fun "Ratchet and Clank Future: Tools of Destruction" is. I mean, it's simply awe-inspiring. I still think "Resident Evil 4" is my favorite game of all time, but this "Ratchet" is easily the most fun I've had playing a game, and by the time I finish it (I'm about a third of the way through), it might supplant "Resident Evil 4."
Video Game Note #2: I bought my second game for the system, "Motorstorm", last Wednesday. I also downloaded the demo of "Uncharted: Drake's Fortune" because, well, I have a PS3 and I can. It's already on my Christmas list, but if I don't get it, I'll be sure to buy it in January. I've said this to various people, but the PS3 has better graphics and more realistic game play than my life.
Video Game Note #3: On the other hand, f#ck "Final Fantasy III" for the Nintendo DS. F#ck it in it's ridiculously hard, insanely repetitive, can't-save-in-a-dungeon ear. Good gravy. I'm OK with six really hard bosses near the end of the game. That's fine. What I can't deal with is having them in order with no ability to save your game between them. It's all or nothing. After getting smoked by #4 a few weeks back, I spent maybe an hour a day grinding my levels up, until I went from Level 50 across the board to Level 60. My characters were a well-oiled machine. And then the final boss just opened an unholy can of turn-based whup-ass on me and two hours of work Friday night went out the tubes. Now I know how a parent who tells their kid that if he joins the circus, he can never walk through that door again. I'm just not sure I'm letting that carnie-loving game anywhere near me again.
Compounding my anger is that it took Mrs. Me and I 3 hours to go the six miles between downtown Boston and our apartment. We left at 5:15 pm, went to North Station, found out that every train (including our 5:50) was delayed, decided to grab a bite, came back to find the 6:25 was delayed, got on that at 6:45, watched the 6:55 train leave before us, learned the 6:25's engine died, and eventually had to take the 7:30. To make all of that even worse, I left $60 worth of presents in the overhead in my rush to leave the hell that was the MBTA. In case you haven't figured this out yet, my Friday night blew.
Tonight? Should be better. I have a newly-shaved head and have been conscripted into being the eye candy for a karaoke rendition of "I'm Too Sexy", with the wife and her friend on vocals. And if you think I'm telling you where I'll be, man, you're just silly.
Posted by Ryan McGee at December 8, 2007 06:44 PM